@MRJ I completely disagree. I think all zoo management with a shred of good business sense wants to engage their local community (be it a huge city like Sydney or a small town like Halls Gap) to spread a conservation message and foster their support.
Naming animals is a really effective way to do this. If it wasn't they wouldn't do it. So to answer your questions:
Disagree. My mum can name pretty much every elephant at Melbourne Zoo, even though she only visits every few years. On that, I recall many, many years ago I was at a trivia night and one question was "What is the name of the two elephants at Melbourne Zoo?". Mine was not the only table that got the answer right. You only need to loiter around a zoo volunteer at any of the major zoos to hear the occasional regular questioning "But what happened to the other silverback?"
I don't even believe that
you believe that ! Are you really suggesting Taronga would have gotten away with naming a gorilla "Mzuri"?
Because we are not inventing the wheel. Just choosing names.
Well obviously not. Which is rather ridiculous to me. As it shows how little respect there is for the public's interest. Which is one of my biggest criticism's of zoos. To me, I would think fostering peoples interest in the zoos day to day activities is only a good thing.
Personally, I'm forever unimpressed how appallingly little information is given about the animals through signage. Both at a species level (another whole topic of conversation) but also at an individual level - where I think the scope of interest would be even greater. Since reading a sign is optional, one would assume zoos would provide as much information in this format as people might choose to read. but instead all visitors are all treated as if we have the attention span of five-year olds.
I think zoos would be wise to volunteer as much information as the public will absorb regarding their individual animal's management and husbandry and promote the co-operation they have with other zoos at managing these animals. People love that stuff. If you hear a zoo volunteer chatting to a patron about.... anything, lets say a binturong, I can guarantee you that every single ear in the vicinity is pricked up and hanging off every word that volunteer says, even if they are too embarrassed to be the one asking the questions.
People love. that. stuff.
As much as I wish to hear more people asking keepers/volunteers about a species decline or deforestation, the number one visitor question has gotta be: "Are you getting him/her a boyfriend/girlfriend?"
Because people love it. And whilst yes, a name is just a name, I guess my argument is that the kind of thinking that leads to a zoo shrugging off naming their pygmy hippo the exact same name as another zoo, is the same thinking that underestimates the value in this stuff. Its the way in.
If I owned a zoo I'd have a sign advertising the name (and birthplace etc) and of almost everything but the meerkats. And that just because I wouldn't have any!
